


Check-Up

by DangerousCommieSubversive



Category: Kamen Rider Ex-Aid, Kamen Rider W
Genre: Brief appearances by other characters - Freeform, Doctor's Appointments, Games, Gen, Prompt Fic, but perceive what you will and have fun!, i have no idea how to tag this honestly, there is no explicit shipping because this story was written for a child
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:21:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,671
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24208870
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DangerousCommieSubversive/pseuds/DangerousCommieSubversive
Summary: Making doctor's appointments is a little touchy when you don't legally exist, which is why Philip has taken advantage of the unofficial professional network that exists among Kamen Riders to find a doctor he won't have toexplaineverything to. Emu is a little startled to have another Rider making an appointment with him, but he certainly understands the desire to get a basic check-up without a ton of awkward questions.Meanwhile, Parad is a little miffed by the idea that hewouldn'tget to meet another Rider, doctor's appointment or no, and Shoutaro needs something to do while Philip's busy, so they hit the arcade.Honestly, it goes pretty well.
Comments: 27
Kudos: 67





	Check-Up

**Author's Note:**

  * For [insectoid_demigoddess](https://archiveofourown.org/users/insectoid_demigoddess/gifts).



> This was written for my dear friend Fides--or rather for their son, who is an angel and a delight and who, when he saw that I was taking prompts on Tumblr, wanted to know if I could write him something about Emu and Philip working together while Shoutaro keeps Parad entertained. So that's what I did. I had fun with it.

Parad’s major point of frustration, as it turns out, is that the appointment isn’t on his calendar.

“You can’t just go disappearing on me, you know I worry about you. Anyway, why,” he says sulkily from his perch on the back of the couch, “does some child need a secret appointment on Saturday?”

“Because it’s not for a child.” Emu stares into his closet. Is this the sort of thing he needs a necktie for? Is there an established etiquette for meeting other Riders in non-emergency situations that he doesn’t know? “And I’m not sure why they couldn’t make an official appointment, but I’m sure they have a good reason for it.”

At _this_ Parad perks up. “So it’s an _actual_ secret? Who is it? Are we spies now?”

“No, we’re not spies, it’s another Rider.”

“Is Ghost dead again? I didn’t think you knew medicine for ghosts.”

“No, it’s, uh. W. We haven’t met him before. Apparently Shinnosuke—Drive—gave them my number.”

“ _Oh._ Can I come? I like meeting new Riders.”

“Parad, it’s still a breach of patient confidentiality even if they’re Riders.”

“I’m sure they won’t mind. Besides, I’m bored.”

* * *

Parad won’t be dissuaded, and so they walk to the hospital together. The weather’s nice; occasionally Parad fizzes away in a cloud of pixels only to rematerialize in a tree or on the top of a wall, clearly enjoying the sunlight and the walk in general. Despite himself, Emu smiles. It’s good to see him happy.

The motorcycle pulls up moments after they reach the hospital, the driver climbing off first and helping his passenger down before pulling off his helmet and immediately replacing it with a hat that he pulls from one of the saddlebags. He adjusts it, frowning in the rear-view mirror, until the passenger taps his shoulder gently and says, “Shoutaro, I believe this is our welcoming committee.”

The man in the hat straightens up with a start, scratching the back of his head nervously and then immediately trying to look serious when he sees Emu. “Oh. Uh. Right, yes. You’re Dr. Hojo?”

“That’s me.”

They shake hands awkwardly. “Hidari Shoutaro.”

“And I’m Philip,” the other man says, quietly, shaking hands only briefly. “Thank you for seeing me under such unusual circumstances; Tomari Shinnosuke said you were very reliable.”

“Of course. I mean, anything for another Rider.” Emu grins. “Our lives are already so weird, right? It’s nice not having to explain yourself to someone all the time.” Then, as Parad is clearing his throat quietly, “And, ah, this is Parad, he’s my, he’s uh—”

Far from being disturbed by the presence of an additional person, Philip’s face seems to light up, and he leans forward a bit, examining Parad with a startling degree of intensity. “Kamen Rider Parad-DX. Yes. Wonderful! I’ll admit, I was hoping to meet you, although of course it’s not exactly germane to the actual purpose of our visit.” He grips Parad’s hand far longer than he did Emu’s. “If there’s sufficient time later in the day I’d very much like to talk more. I’ve read everything about you.”

Shoutaro starts to say, “Philip, you can’t just _say_ that to strangers—”

Parad is beaming like he’s been given a birthday present. “I didn’t know people _wrote_ about me.”

“Not people, exactly. But yes, at length.” _Finally_ Philip lets go of Parad’s hand. “I’m keeping Dr. Hojo waiting. We can talk later.”

“Right, yeah, I’ve only got the exam room reserved for so long.” Emu pauses. “I’m sorry, Hidari- _san,_ there isn’t really a lot to do in the area around the hospital. I mean, I suppose there’s that patisserie Hiiro likes…”

Parad slings an arm around Shoutaro’s shoulders, grinning as Shoutaro jumps. “I’ll show him around!”

Shoutaro eyes him nervously. “Ah. Thank you. I think.”

* * *

As Philip and the doctor disappear into the hospital building, Shoutaro steps gingerly out from under Parad’s unnervingly staticky arm and says, after a moment, “So you’re also a Rider?”

“Yes. Are you? M said he was meeting W, but he didn’t say there’d be another person.”

“There isn’t. I mean, obviously we’re two people, but we’re both W.”

“Huh. Do you trade off?”

“No, we’re both W at once, we’re a single Kamen Rider.” Shoutaro braces himself for this weirdly-dressed man to ask for an explanation.

Instead, startlingly, Parad says, “Oh!” as a look of immediate comprehension dawns on his face. The intensity of his grin is a little alarming; he looks as if he might bite. “M and I do something like that. Not all the time, mostly he’s Ex-Aid and I’m Parad-DX, but sometimes we’re both Ex-Aid if we’re doing something we need two bodies at once for. It’s fun.”

Shoutaro blinks. “I…see. Look, I hope this isn’t a rude question, but are you…not human?”

“Of course not, I’m a Bugster. Why would that be a rude question? I mean, obviously _you’re_ human, but your friend isn’t, is he? He doesn’t seem like most humans.”

“That’s, ah, very complicated, actually.” Shoutaro pauses. “So we don’t actually get out of Fuuto much, what is there to do in Seito?”

Parad shrugs. “I don’t know what _else_ there is to do, but I know how to get to every arcade in a five-mile radius of the hospital. What games do you play?”

* * *

Once they’re in the privacy of the exam room, Emu finally asks the question that’s been bothering him since he got a phone call from an unfamiliar number two weeks ago. “I didn’t want to ask about this on the phone, but why all the secrecy? I mean, not that I’m not happy to help, but I normally only work with adults if they’re CR patients. Were you concerned about a potential Game Disease infection?”

“No, not at all.” Philip pulls a plain brown envelope from the messenger bag he’s wearing and passes it over. “There are a number of irregularities surrounding my legal status and medical records that make it difficult to see a doctor in the usual way. We thought a fellow Rider would be more likely to take them in stride.”

Emu pulls a sheaf of papers out of the envelope, reads the top page, and frowns. “This is the medical record of…Sonozaki Wakana? The singer who disappeared? I used to hear her single on the radio all the time when I was in high school.”

“Yes. She was my older sister. The body I now inhabit used to be hers, although obviously it’s been reconfigured somewhat.” Philip shifts uncomfortably at Emu’s surprised look. “It’s a very long story. In any case, my original physical body died when I was eight, _I_ don’t legally exist, and all relevant medical records are under the name of a woman who vanished six years ago.”

Emu only takes a moment to collect himself, skimming the rest of the record briefly before putting it aside. “I mean, I can definitely see why you wouldn’t want to explain that to a regular doctor. You should have seen the looks I got when I had to introduce Parad to people at the Ministry of Health. So what seems to be the problem?”

“Well, I’ve been experiencing some unexpected shortness of breath and attendant dizziness lately, especially while in the performance of research work, and we were concerned that it might be a sign that this body is somehow rejecting my presence or deteriorating…”

* * *

“What do you mean, you’ve never played real pool? I thought you said you knew _every_ game.”

Parad sniffs irritably. “I know _video_ games. _You’ve_ never played Tekken.”

“I haven’t played the _new_ ones, the arcade in Fuuto had Tekken 4 when I was in middle school.” Shoutaro frowns. “Although I don’t remember being much good at it. There was this one really old game they had, with a mouse who caught criminals, I was good at that one.”

“You mean Mappy?” There’s another startling quick-switch of expressions as Parad goes from sulky to delighted in seconds. “I wouldn’t have expected that at all.”

Shoutaro draws himself up in an attempt to salvage his own dignity. “I’m an unexpected person. Does this arcade have a pool table? I feel like I saw one when we came in. I’m teaching you how to play pool, you should know how to play pool if you’re so good at all these other games.”

“That sounds fun.” Parad follows after him. “I can master anything, after all.”

* * *

“You know,” says Emu, after running through a standard physical and then spending several minutes listening to Philip’s lungs, “I don’t think the problem you’re having is nearly as complicated as you thought.”

“That’s a relief. What is it, then?”

“I’m fairly sure you have asthma. Normally it shows much earlier in life, but given your unusual circumstances I’m not surprised that it hasn’t cropped up before, and allergies do develop. I’d like to do a skin prick test to be certain of what you’re reacting to, if you have time, but if that’s the case then mainly what you need is an inhaler.”

Philip relaxes visibly. “That _is_ much simpler than what I’d been suspecting, yes. Come to think of it, I do remember Wakana occasionally complaining about being allergic to flowers when we were young. Yes, I do have time for a test, we have the whole day before we need to go back to Fuuto.”

“All right, great, I’ll call a nurse for one. Actually, I’ll call Poppy, she’s around today and I’d love to introduce you.”

* * *

Shoutaro wins two games of pool by a wide margin and then proceeds to lose three more as soon as Parad finally gets the hang of the rules. At the end of the last one, Parad seems like he’d be happy to keep playing for the rest of the day, especially since they’ve gathered a small crowd of fascinated spectators. He practically glows at every bit of applause or murmured praise. It’s sweet.

Losing so badly in front of onlookers is starting to _sting_ a bit, though, so after Parad sets up a spectacular trick shot and sinks the last three balls at once, Shoutaro says, “Here, I taught you my game, why don’t you show me how to play…whatever the new Tekken game is?”

Parad practically drags him over to one of the arcade’s three Tekken 6 machines. “You said you used to play 4, right? What character did you play?”

“Uh, there was…a cop? Who did kung fu?”

“Lei Wulong. That’s him. Here, these are the controls…”

Fifteen minutes later Parad steps back from the console and says, “You _shark,_ W. You said you were _bad_ at Tekken 4.”

Shoutaro shrugs. “Beginner’s luck? Or maybe I played it more than I thought. Also what are you doing calling _me_ a shark, you set up some shots back over there that I didn’t think were physically _possible._ ” He pauses. “Also, doesn’t it seem like we should have heard from Philip and Dr. Hojo by now?”

“ _Nobody_ has beginner’s luck with Lei Wulong.” Parad frowns. “You’re right, M’s appointments don’t usually take nearly so long.”

“I’m calling Philip.” Shoutaro’s phone is already in his hand, but, “He’s…not answering. That’s worrying.”

“Try calling M.”

It takes a moment longer to find the correct number, which is saved in his phone as “Dr. Ex-Aid,” but Shoutaro _does_ find it, and after a moment Emu _does_ pick up and says, immediately, _“You know, we were just realizing that we should have texted you.”_

“Is everything all right? It’s been a very long time.”

 _“Everything’s fine. It turns out that the—the Gaia Library, right?”_ There’s a quiet sound in the background of the call. _“Thanks. Yeah, apparently it’s got some kind of dust? We’re not sure how that works, but anyway, your partner’s got some allergies, they’re manageable, it’ll be fine.”_

Shoutaro feels tension drop out of his shoulders. “That’s…a huge relief. Although…if everything’s fine, what’s taken so long?”

_“Well, we’re giving him an EEG scan. That’s why he couldn’t answer his own phone.”_

The tension is immediately back. “Why? What’s wrong?”

On the other end of the line there’s a noise that Shoutaro realizes after a moment is Emu laughing awkwardly. _“We were talking about how he accesses the Library and we…might have gotten a little overexcited. So we’re taking an image of his neural activity while he does a lookup. I’ve actually learned a ton about the history of medical imaging techniques, it’s great.”_

“…I take it that’s what he’s been looking up.”

_“I mean, it seemed appropriate. Although I think we’ve scared the tech. We’ve been using the diagnostic machines at the CR, I’ll text you the address so you can meet us there.”_

“Sounds good. Wait, machines? Multiple machines?”

 _“Yeah, we did an fMRI first.”_ Another sound in the back of the call. _“Also Philip says, could you bring him something small to eat, he trusts you to find something he’ll like.”_ More sounds. _“And also some coffee.”_

“God, right, he hasn’t eaten since last night because he was _convinced_ you’d need to run some kind of blood tests.”

_“Fortunately no, not today. So we’ll see you soon?”_

“As soon as I can get over there.”

When Shoutaro puts his phone away, Parad grins at him and says, “So did M get excited about something?”

Shoutaro rubs at the bridge of his nose. He’s got a headache. Philip keeps telling him that he’s been getting more headaches lately because he needs to get his eyes checked, but he’s fairly sure _anyone_ would get headaches living his life. “Apparently yes? Or, well, Philip got excited about something, and he got Dr. Hojo excited about it too, so we have to meet them at…he called it the CR?”

“Yeah, that’s easy to get to from here.” Parad starts heading for the door with such immediacy that Shoutaro struggles to keep up with his ridiculously long strides. “Normally I’d just go, but I figure I can show you the way.”

* * *

By the time Shoutaro’s motorcycle pulls up outside the CR, the flabbergasted EEG technician has finally calmed down, Philip has read all of his scan results with fascination and apparent ease, and the other Gamer Doctors have arrived. Initially it was just Poppy, since she’d helped out with the allergy test and come to the CR with them, but after the fMRI she called Kiriya with Philip’s permission, and _he_ called Hiiro and Taiga, and now all five of them are sitting around the table with Philip, Emu taking notes as they argue about whether or not anything from Philip’s re-corporation could be applied to Game Disease patients.

Shoutaro and Parad walk into the room just as Philip shuts his eyes and starts glowing, and Poppy disappears in a pixelated fizz, only to reappear seconds later wincing. “ _Ow._ I couldn’t get in!” She rubs her nose. “It was like running into a _wall!_ ”

“I suspect that’s because it’s a spiritual location, not a digital one. The only other people I’ve seen there who weren’t blood relations were either very near death or experiencing what might be termed spiritual extremity.” The glow fades, and Philip’s eyes open. “Ah! Shoutaro. You’re back. Were you and Parad able to stay entertained? I apologize for my appointment running so far over time.”

“That’s all right, partner, I’d honestly be more worried if it _hadn’t_ run over. You remember when you had to get that filling and when I came to pick you up the dentist was teaching you how to play golf?” Shoutaro grins. “Parad and I shot some pool.”

“That sounds enjoyable.” Philip pauses, gaze abruptly focusing on a package in Shoutaro’s hand. “Is that takoyaki?”

Emu blinks. “Parad, I didn’t think you _knew_ how to play pool.”

“I didn’t. Shoutaro taught me.” Parad pauses, and then mutters, “Also he beat me at Tekken.”

Emu feels his jaw drop. “He did _what?_ _How?_ What _character_ was he playing?”

“Lei Wulong.” Parad pouts, but only for a moment. “I beat him at pool, though.”

“That’s…really impressive, Hidari- _san,_ we’ve won tournaments playing that game. Oh, uh, these are my colleagues,” and then there are introductions, which go on for some time, since they have to go round once with everyone’s given name and then a _second_ time when Emu realizes that he didn’t mention anyone’s Rider name. It’s funny seeing Hiiro and Taiga both trying to conceal how interested they are in meeting Shoutaro.

Finally, though, introductions are done, and Philip has been left alone for a minute so that he can quietly devour the takoyaki that Shoutaro brought him, and Poppy says, “Oh, here, I forgot to give him these, I figure they’ll get to the same place if I give them to you,” and hands Shoutaro a white bag.

He blinks. “What are these?”

“Medications. Your partner has an inhaler now, and I’m _thinking_ it might be on you to make sure he remembers to use it when he needs it.”

“I mean, I have to remind him to eat half the time, that’s nothing new—uh.” Shoutaro looks at the bag more closely, a blush visibly creeping up the sides of his face. “That’s, is that, Philip, did you use my surname?”

Emu grins nervously. “Well, the computer system wouldn’t accept a scrip without a surname, and he didn’t really want to use Sonozaki.”

Philip swallows a mouthful of takoyaki and says, “Using yours seemed to be the most appropriate option.”

“I, uh, yeah, that’s. That’s absolutely fine. That’s good.” Shoutaro is beet red. “That’s fine with me.”

Emu relaxes. He’d been mildly worried as he typed the prescriptions into the computer, surname Hidari, given name Philip—partially because he was essentially inventing a person for the hospital’s systems, but also out of the vague fear that Shoutaro might somehow be offended. He’s offended plenty of people in his life, but there are most people and then there’s _Kamen Rider W_ , who seems legendary on a level that even other Riders aren’t. (Well, except Gaim, but he’s something entirely different.)

And then his train of thought is broken entirely when Kiriya drapes an arm over his shoulders and says, “So are we treating our colleagues from Fuuto to dinner or what, because I’m starving.”

Hiiro rolls his eyes. “Coroner, you’re always starving.”

“Says the man with a sweet tooth the size of the city.”

Around them, the others are nodding, and Parad adds, helpfully, “I don’t eat, obviously, but Philip said he wanted to talk to me.”

“Yes, very much.” Philip wipes his mouth off and drops the takeout container and napkin in a trash can. “Dinner might be nice. Don’t look at me like that, Shoutaro, I’m still hungry.”

“You’re a bottomless pit, partner.” Shoutaro holds out a hand and helps Philip up. “I don’t know where you keep it all.”

* * *

After some disagreement, they end up heading to a yakiniku place not far from the hospital, Poppy pixelating away half a block from the restaurant when she remembers that she needs to complete a report for the Ministry. It’s a good meal, although about halfway through Shoutaro does find himself arguing passionately with Snipe—Taiga, that’s his name, Hanaya Taiga—about detective novels. He doesn’t realize that he’s started to rise from his seat and Taiga is leaning over the grill until the surgeon with the dimples whose name he can’t remember says, “I’ve never seen Hanaya get this excited about something.”

Philip has been absorbed in an involved discussion about…something computers-related with Parad, but looks up at this. “Shoutaro is uniquely good at inspiring enthusiasm in others.”

Shoutaro feels his face go red, and a glance across the table shows that Taiga has _also_ turned red and sat down, muttering, “I enjoy detective novels.”

He reminds Shoutaro powerfully of Terui.

“I liked them,” he says to Philip, when the meal is done and everyone is dispersing and they’re heading to the motorcycle for the drive back to Fuuto. “It’s nice to, you know…talk to other Riders like we’re normal people. I wonder if we’ll ever get to see them again.”

“I have a follow-up appointment in six months.” Philip climbs onto the bike behind him. “So yes, I imagine so.”

“Oh, good, that’s probably a good idea anyway.”

Emu and Parad wave to them, and they get ready to head out—

There’s a loud, _visible_ explosion on the other side of the city. Several small, brightly colored figures are flung away from it into the sky.

Shoutaro _feels_ Philip frown, and ok, maybe he does need glasses, he _is_ squinting to see what’s going on as Philip says, “If I’m not mistaken, I believe that’s a Super Sentai team over there.”

“Oh, come _on._ ”

Nearby, Emu is saying, “Wait, is that _Lucky?_ What’s _he_ doing here?” even as he’s pulling his Driver out of some improbably spacious pocket in his jacket and his colleagues are going through various highly-colorful transformations. Parad makes eye contact with Shoutaro and winks before _fist-bumping_ Emu and somehow fizzing away into his body—and then, seconds later, Emu turns into two people.

“So _that’s_ what he meant by needing two bodies at once.” Shoutaro reaches for the W Driver. “Partner, is there anywhere around here that’s safe for you?”

Philip’s already getting back off the bike. “I’ll go back into the restaurant, under the circumstances I’m sure they’ll understand.” He hurries inside, Shoutaro puts on his Driver, and then there he is again, comfortingly present in Shoutaro’s head. _I’m ready when you are, Shoutaro._

Both Emus—or rather Emu and Parad, he supposes—and the other doctors are waiting for them. The Emu who’s teal on the left meets his gaze and shrugs. “We never catch a break, do we?”

Shoutaro groans and slots the Joker Memory into his Driver. “I guess not. And we were having such a nice day, too.”

**Author's Note:**

> I am fairly sure that no Rider on Earth would expect another Rider to wear a necktie to meet them, but Emu worries, you know? Also, I desperately want yakiniku.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! Share and enjoy! Please leave me a comment if you had a good time! ^_^


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